Let's La Gon
Let's La Gon (レッツラゴン, Retsura Gon) is a gag manga by Fujio Akatsuka and Fujio Pro, that ran from September 5, 1971 (#37) to July 14, 1974 (#29) in Weekly Shonen Sunday. It tells the story of Gon, a young boy living with his dysfunctional father, and the bizarre antics that go on in their lives. Overview "The humor in “Osomatsu-kun” became nonsense with “Genius Bakabon” and then surreal with “Let's Lagon”. This was the world I was aiming for. '' After the failure of Bukkare*Dan, Akatsuka took a trip to New York City to visit MAD Magazine and to prepare for his next series idea. Upon his return, he would collaborate with his editor Toshiki Takei in idea meetings that would quickly spawn outlandish ideas, to the point where Akatsuka would immediately forgo the idea of doing rough drafts of the manga and have it immediately drawn on manuscript paper. This made it so that once an idea started, it could not be undone and had to be run with. The overall tone of the series quickly became more chaotic than what had been seen in Osomatsu-kun and The Genius Bakabon, with content challenging the younger demographic of the magazine. The title was coined from Akatsuka's English phrase of "Let's la go!" that he had used while in NYC, and the character of Beramatcha would take his name from the pronunciation of "very much". After a while in the series, Akatsuka would attempt to repeat the success of the "Sheeh!" pose by having characters strike the "Ajapaa!" pose of the actor Junzaburo Ban. It however did not take off as much. Characters For more, see List of characters in Let's La Gon Gon A dry young boy who goes about life at his own pace. He was the youngest of six sons, but all his older brothers died when he was a toddler due to his father's harsh ways of punishment. This also resulted in his mother's death. Gon is rarely seen in school, and mostly wanders about. Gon's Father An overbearing father who does not care to actually act the part. He considers the deaths of his wife and other children due to them having "given up" and being unable to tough out his treatment. Irako The family cat. He is docile while sleeping, but becomes violent when disturbed awake. Beramatcha A wild bear that Gon and father brought home, and that learned to speak English and walk like a man. Fujio Akatsuka The very author of this manga, seen in the mid-point to be pushed around by his editor Takei and at odds with him. Toshiki Takei Akatsuka's boss, a rude and controlling man with a huge nose and incredibly smelly socks. Serialization See List of chapters in Let's La Gon All chapters except #12 for 1974 were represented in reprints, though more recent releases such as the eBookJapan edition include it. The separate special feature of "Cyrano do Beramatcha" is also included in the reprints. Reprints * Akebono: 12 volumes (1973-1975) * Tachikawa: 1 volume (1975) * Futabasha: 3 volumes (1984) * Gomashobo: 12 volumes (1999-2001) * Shogakukan: 12 volumes in the "Fujio Akatsuka Complete Works" DVD-ROM set (2002), 1 volume of "Let's La Gon Masterpiece Selection" (2005). * eBookJapan: 12 volumes (2011) * Fukkan: 7 volumes (2013) Media Curriculum Machine: "AIUEIO Song" This 1977-1978 educational program by NTV notably featured the characters in the animation for a song about katakana in one episode. Most of the song was centered around Beramatcha and The Police Officer with the Connected Eyes, although Gon briefly appeared at the start. The animation was provided by Studio Lotus. Hitachi Television City: Nyarome's Fun Mathematics Classroom Gon, his father, and Beramatcha were seen among the numerous Akatsuka characters in this 1982 TV special. However, it has yet to ever get a home video release. Beramatcha was voiced by Yasuo Tanaka, while Joji Yanami provided the voice for Gon's father. Unaired Anime Pilot In 1990, Studio Gallop was commissioned to do a pilot of Gon for Fuji TV, with it being projected to air after Gaki Deka had wrapped up. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, the plan fell through and Gon was not produced as a full series. Very few details are known on the pilot, and it has never been screened. Stage Show: "Men's! Let's La Gon" Written by Toru Hosokawa, this stage show revolves around the life of Gon, his father, and Beramatcha. It was performed at the Honda Theatre from July 30th to August 9th, 2015. References External Links *Let's La Gon at Koredeiinoda *Let's La Gon eBookJapan page *Let's La Gon stage show page Category:Gag works Category:Let's La Gon Category:Manga Category:1970s works Category:Works serialized in Weekly Shonen Sunday